The Bundy Syndrome
by Rampantt
Summary: "All of this, all of it! I did this for you! For us! Can't you see," she asked, moving closer to him, holding the blade under his chin. "You and I are meant to be together. Just us! Only us! You and me!"
1. Phase 1

**_Allow me to introduce myself, my name is KawaiixKisses and this is yet another SasuHina. I'm currently experimenting with different forms of writing and while watching unsolved mysteries, this came to me. Anyway, don't judge me by the incoherent, slightly alarming thoughts in my head that allowed me to write such a thing, but instead judge me by what I have actually written. Hahaha. Read, Enjoy, Review._**

**The Bundy Syndrome**

_KawaiixKisses_

Phase One

* * *

Love makes us do crazy things – unexplainable, completely ridiculous things. Things we wouldn't do under ordinary circumstances. Things we wouldn't dream of even on our worst days. How far is too far when it comes to matters of the heart? How much is too much when its for the person our heart desires? Just when is enough, truly enough? The say goes 'it's all fun and games until someone pokes an eye out'; but what if no one loses an eye? What if instead they lose their lives? Is it then enough? According to Hyuuga Hinata it isn't…

The opal eyed woman stared down at the lifeless body beneath her. Her chest rose and fell with heavy and deep sighs, the adrenaline she once felt only moments ago leaving her body as she calmed. Images of what had transpired minutes ago flickered across her mind's television, slowly replaying the events leading up to the demise of her pink-haired rival.

She remembered seeing her laughing and smiling with him, clinging to his arm like an unwanted stepchild. The pinkette was a nuisance. A pest. She had to go. Hinata would have to be sure of it.

Her opal eyes stared down at the lifeless pinkette now, studying the way her dull green eyes stared up at her, the light that once glimmered there faded completely. Hinata tilled her head slightly, her dark hair falling down her shoulder and brushing the bloodied cheek of her one-time rival.

"You're not all that pretty…" she mentioned, staring down at the corpse.

Her pale finger brushed a lock pink hair away from the dead body's face, staring at it more carefully. "You shouldn't wear so much make-up either, you'll get wrinkles early on."

The corpse gave no response to Hinata's words, it only stared at her, it's expressionless face frozen in time. Hinata continued to stare however despite the silence she received, trying to find just what everyone thought was so great about her. Her opal eyes traveled down to the corpse's chest, studying the small mounds of flesh there. It couldn't have been her breasts, Hinata figured the woman must have been a B-cup at the most – and that was her being generous. Her eyes traveled to her own breasts then, comparing the two momentarily; if she had to say, she'd say hers were far better than the pinkette's had been – they were large and round while the pinkette's had been small and triangular in shape.

Hinata sat back, still straddling the dead body's waist. The murderer wondered vaguely if anyone would miss the pinkette; the thought only lasted a brief moment before she tossed it aside. She didn't care if anyone missed her or not – that is unless a certain Uchiha missed her. Hinata doubted it however, he always seemed so irritated by her presence – he often publicly complained about her…to her face.

Hinata climbed off of the woman, suddenly bored with her thoughts. Instead, she opted to begin cleaning up the mess she had made – her clothes, skin and parts of her hair were drenched in the now sticky blood of her rival.

"You just had to be a gusher…" she commented quietly, stepping away from the body.

The white-skinned woman made her way towards the bathroom, turning the shower on, stripping her body of the clingy material before stepping inside. The warm water crashed against her skin, melting away all the blood the stuck to her skin. She ran her hands through her hair, riding it of blood and allowing her thoughts to wander. Sasuke probably wouldn't take it well if she told him that she killed Sakura, no one would really – though she was sure he would be relieved not having her around pestering him all the time. She decided it would be in her best interest to keep the mystery of Sakura's death to herself.

When she was finished, she turned the pipes off and stepped out. She searched the cabinets, pulling out a disgustingly pink blow dryer.

"It figures…"

Nevertheless, the dark-haired woman blow dried her and pinned it up in a messy bun before returning to the bedroom where the dead body laid on the ground.

"Lets hope you have something that will fit me," she said to the dead woman on the floor as she moved to the closet.

Hinata eyed the assortment of dresses that hung from the bar inside. Her tiny hands slid over the dresses, horrified by all the shades of pink that littered the closet.

"You've got to be kidding…"

Even so, she had no other option. The woman pulled out a fuchsia dress whose skirt was exaggeratedly short and whose neck was incredibly low. Her white eyes traveled over to the dress's back, or lack thereof. How in hell did anyone wear such a thing? Hinata didn't even want to begin considering it and so put the dress back. She went through a few more similar ones before pulling out yet another hot pink monstrosity. However, when she studied it closely, she supposed it wasn't so awful. It was short of course, but a bit longer than the previous one. The eraser back was a bit much, but Hinata didn't really have any other choice. Taking the dress off the hanger, the dark-haired woman slipped into the dress then searched for a pair of shoes to match.

"I'm surprised you know other colors exist other than pink," Hinata said to a very dead Sakura, turning from the closet with a pair of white pumps in hand.

She sat down on the edge of the bed, slipping her feet into the white shoes while watching the dead body on the floor. She stood up once more, staring herself in the mirror for a while. She supposed she didn't look half bad. Hinata let her hair down from the bun and took a better look at herself. Much better. Maybe Sakura's taste wasn't so bad, notwithstanding it made no difference – Hinata was still glad the pinkette was dead. She was much better off without her holding her back and getting in the way.

"As much fun as this was…" Hinata said, picking up her clothes and dumping them in a plastic bag. "I'm afraid I have to go now."

She tied the bag in a knot then picked up the steak knife, still drenched in blood. Her opal eyes studied the weapon carefully, eyeing the dark liquid that covered it's blade with interest. She cast Sakura one last glance before leaving the downtown apartment.

* * *

"_A Tokyo woman was found dead in her apartment last night. The victim has been identified as 23 year old Haruno Sakura. Victims parents say they are shocked by their daughter's sudden death, they claim she had no known enemies and that her death was truly tragic. Detectives have yet to give detail on any possible leads. I'm Matsumoto Sachiko for Tokyo 1 eleven o'clock news._"

They all stared at the screen even as the report on their dead best friend ended – everyone of them unsure of what to say. It was literally just a few days ago that any of them had seen her, smiling and laughing as she always had been. Knowing that she was gone was hard for all of them to bare. Who would kill her? Sure, everyone had their problems with the pinkette but none were serious enough for any of them to want to kill her.

"She's really gone… the news just makes it… more real…" Ino spoke up, breaking the silence that filled the room.

A few of heads nodded, agreeing with the blonde's statement. It was surreal in a sense, knowing that Sakura was never coming back. Sure she had been annoying, but that didn't mean they all hadn't loved her.

"It feels weird, y'know… just Tuesday she and I were arguing," Kiba mentioned.

"I saw her at the market… She was looking for strawberries… they were her favorite, I think."

More heads nodded.

"Shino and I saw her walking past the bookstore Monday…" Shikamaru stated calmly.

Soon they all began retelling the last time either of them had seen the pinkette alive. Inwardly, the murderer smirked, watching as her friends mourned the death of her rival.

"_I saw her lying in a pool of her own blood in her bedroom, Wednesday,"_ she thought to herself, musing silently.

Hinata couldn't help the tiny smile that turned up the corner of her mouth. It brought her an odd sense of joy knowing she had hurt all of them to an extent. No, none of them had ever done anything particularly vicious to her, but it didn't matter – she was glad they were suffering, she was glad they were hurting; it made her feel good.

"Anyone know when the funeral is?" Naruto asked quietly.

All eyes turned on him then as he broke his silence. Sasuke and Naruto were the closest to Sakura, the three of them had grown up together. They had also been the quietest, neither of them expressing the regret at Sakura's death. It must have been hard for the two of them, losing someone they had grown up with, someone they had known their whole life. In away it was like losing their sister.

"Saturday," Ino answered him.

Naruto nodded his head silently, no longer willing to speak. He was better than Sasuke, however, the Uchiha hadn't said a word about Sakura's death since the night of her murder. An outsider would have thought him to be completely indifferent, but his friends knew the truth, they knew he was hurting on the inside. Silence was just the 'Sasuke' way to deal with these sorts of things.

"M-maybe we should all r-ride together…" Hinata said softly, hoping for a chance to sit beside Sasuke.

The group nodded, all in agreeance with their fair and quiet friend. None of them had any idea how mischievous, how vial, how troubled the young woman was. Plotting and manipulative was she.

"Haruno-san must be crushed," Ino commented, referring to her dead friend's mother.

"Hn," Kiba mentioned.

Silence fell between the group once more, no one quite sure of what to say next. Each one found themselves searching for a way to comfort one another, but the words just weren't coming forth. Then suddenly, without warning, Sasuke rose to his feet and walked out of the room, his expression a stoic mask, veiling his thoughts expertly.

"Sasuke-kun?" Ino began, standing up to follow him.

A hand closed around her wrist, drawing her back. The blonde looked down into the cyan orbs of the normally energetic one in the group. "It's best if we just leave him alone."

"H-hn…" Ino nodded after a moment or two. Naruto was probably right – out of all of them he was the one who knew Sasuke best, he understood him a lot better than any of them were capable of. Ino seated herself once more, joining in on the silence that fell over them once again.

Hinata waited a while, patiently counting the ticks of the clock on the wall before standing to her feet. "I-I have to b-b-be going now. S-see you all S-S-Saturday…" she said softly to the group.

"I'll take you home," Kiba offered.

The dark-haired woman shook her head, silently refusing his offer. "It's okay, Kiba-kun, st-stay. I'll m-make it home ok-k-kay."

The brown haired male nodded his head at her, sitting back down in his seat. He – like most of them – couldn't help but wonder about the smallest of their group of friends. She was so tiny and fragile, he was always worried about hurting her either physically or emotionally – it was as if the wind blew too hard she would tear or worse blow away with it. Hinata to him was someone who needed protecting, someone who shouldn't be on her own. He just wished she realized it, he wished she'd just allow him to take care of her, keep her safe because honestly that's all he wanted to do with her. Granted, he might have a few more perverse ideas in mind as well, but that was beside the point. Notwithstanding, the male did realize that he shouldn't baby her so much, she – like everyone else – needed to have some sense of freedom, of independence. Clinging to her or holding her down would not do her any good.

"Cya, Hinata-chan."

"Bye Nata."

"Later."

"Bye e-everyone," she answered them, shrugging on her jacket before heading out into the cold in search of a certain Uchiha.

She found him a few blocks away from Ino's apartment, sulking silently to himself. His onyx orbs focused on nothing in particular as he looked within himself. Hinata came up beside him, crushing a few leaves under her boots purposefully in order to make her presence known. He looked over at her, studying her face momentarily before looking away once more. They stood side by side for a long while, neither party breaking the silence that fell between them until finally she spoke up.

"You m-miss her?" she asked him, turning her gaze on him.

The Uchiha did not answer at first. Anyone who didn't know would have thought he simply ignored the question, but Hinata knew better – he was searching his mind for an appropriate way to respond.

"Not really."

Though they were the words she would have liked him to say she knew they were not the truth. Hinata understood that losing a childhood friend would be painful for Sasuke – for anyone really – however, that didn't mean she regretted what she did to Sakura, it just meant she was aware of the feelings of others around her.

"S-Sasuke-san shouldn't l-lie…"

He looked down at her, arching his brow slightly.

"You assume that I'm lying?" he questioned her.

"I know you are."

Sasuke blinked in surprise, he hadn't expected such a confident answer, not from Hinata. She hadn't even stuttered which was unusual, the female was always stumbling over her words.

"How can you be sure?" he pushed, suddenly curious in her answer.

Hinata was silent for a while, recovering from her slight slip up. Her stutter was fake. It had always been forced for the better part of her life. She hadn't accidentally stuttered once since she was eleven, however she hadn't let anyone know it. The way she saw it, that stutter was part of her cover, just a way for her to hide herself from the world.

"B-Because… Anyone w-would feel sad after l-losing a close friend," she said to him at last.

Sasuke, seeming to have accepted this answer, nodded his head, turning his gaze away from her. Even though what she said was correct, he had no desire to share the inner workings of his mind with someone like her. He probably wouldn't even tell Naruto. It wasn't that he didn't like Hinata – in fact he tolerated her a lot more than he did most of his 'friends' – he was just a private person, his thoughts were private, for his viewing only. Hinata understood that about him however; she knew that Sasuke wasn't one to share out things like that.

"Y-you don't really ha-have to answer," she said to him after a while.

"Good because it's none of your damn – " he began to say, but caught himself. There was no reason for him to snap on her. Sasuke knew that Hinata wasn't like the rest of them, she wasn't trying to do anything other comfort him. She wasn't expecting anything special from him, wasn't hoping for some kind of attention, had no alternative motive. Hinata was simply Hinata and the Hinata he knew was interested only in helping her friend. He liked that about her. A part of him knew that in time he could actually say that he liked her as a person, he might even eventually consider her a real friend like Naruto. Someday, but not now.

He sighed, running his hand through his hair and closing his eyes momentarily.

"Look, lets just stand here. No talking. Just breathing."

Hinata nodded, she was okay with that. The opal-eyed woman was satisfied with just standing there with him, breathing just as he suggested.

"Do you mind if I smoke?"

"G-go ahead."

The male took out a pack of cigarettes, pulling one stick out and balancing it between his lips. He fished around in his pocket for a lighter but was surprised when the small woman held up a lilac colored lighter to his cigarette lighting it with its flame. He looked at her again, studying the small smile that played at the corners of her lips.

"S-Sasuke-san isn't the only one wh-who smokes…" she said softly, smiling at him.

The male nodded as she pulled the lighter back, taking a drag on his cigarette. It was silent between them once again, the two of them staring out at nothing in particular. Though the urge was strong, Hinata controlled herself from passing glances at Sasuke. If her plan was going to work, she couldn't risk scaring him off by going crazy-fan-girl on him. She had be cool. She had to relax.

"W-well, Sasuke-san, I sh-should be getting home n-now," she said to him after a while.

The male nodded. Ordinarily he wouldn't have cared either way, but for some reason, he felt the insane need to see her home safely. On that thought, what the hell was she doing out here alone at this time for? There was a murderer out there and Hinata was easy prey; small and frail, gentle and kind, she was the kind of shit that perverts and murderers had wet-dreams about.

"I'll take you home."

"I-Its okay Sasuke-san, I c-can – "

"I'll take you home," he said more firmly this time, leaving her no other option other than nodding her head in agreeance with him.

"This way," he said to her, pulling the cigarette from his lips and putting it out with his foot before walking towards his car, parked not too far away from where they stood.

As she followed behind him, the female smirked, unable to contain the sadistic joy that rushed through her. Everything was going according to plan. Phase one was complete.


	2. Phase 2

**_Ello, Ello. My name's KawaiixKisses and this is another installment of 'The Bundy Syndrome'. I wonder if anyone will figure out why I named the story that - I actually think it's quite clever lol. Anyway, it's 2:30am and I am exhausted. Please enjoy and leave me a review at the end. Love ya bunches 3_**

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* * *

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**The Bundy Syndrome**

_**KawaiixKisses**_

_(Muah)_

Phase 2

* * *

The eight of them stood there together long after the funeral had ended – long after Mister and Misses Haruno had departed – just staring down at the ground where their friend had just been buried. The reality of Sakura's death had hit them all simultaneously. They had all known she was gone and that she wasn't coming back, but it hadn't seemed real until the body was lowered into the ground and buried.

Heavy silence fell between them, no one quite sure of what they should say next. They each looked to one another, gagging the expressions worn by the faces of their peers and trying to place the emotions behind them. All of them wondered if anyone felt the way they did. They had all been connected to Sakura in some way. All of them felt the pain of losing her, all of them questioning how something so horrible could have befallen their friend.

"It's not fair," Ino mentioned, staring down at the ground where her best friend had just been buried. "She didn't deserve to die, not like that." They all nodded in agreement. Days before the police released the body; they were notified of the pinkette's cause of death. She had been stabbed to death, multiple puncture wounds littered her body and the sadistic fuck that murdered their friend made sure it was painful. They dragged out her murder over a span of three and a half hours. They let her bleed out, slit her throat shallowly so she wouldn't die instantly.

"The police said they're investigating it," Shino said to Ino, trying to ease the turmoil he sensed within the blonde. She scrunched her brows together however, not at all impressed by his attempt at soothing her. "That doesn't mean shit. They almost never find the murder in these kinds of cases." The group was quiet, all silently agreeing with Ino, despite how pessimistic she was being. "Sakura's not famous, she's not some celebrity or government official's kid. To them, she's nobody."

This was true. All of them knew it. Unless Sakura had been someone the public deemed 'important' they'd be waiting months – maybe years – before the killer was caught. That to them was unacceptable, but what were they supposed to do? They didn't know how to track down a criminal, and if they did, what would they do once they found him? If the bastard was sick enough to kill once, he was sick enough to kill again. It was really just a matter of time before another body would turn up.

That's where Shikamaru's mind seemed to have been going for he looked up from the grave, dark eyes widened slightly. The killer could very well strike again. For all they know this wasn't some random attack. The way her body was handled led him to believe this was a crime of passion. Who ever did this to Sakura, knew her and plotted, schemed a way to kill her. The killer couldn't have been spontaneously evil. No, definitely not. By the looks of it, the genius was positive that who ever did this, did it out of hate, pure hate.

There was a lot to hate Sakura for too, he figured upon further thought. She was tall, pretty and popular. Hell, any girl from their high school would have hated her for those reasons alone. Then there was the fact that she had been stripped naked before being murdered. Perhaps her killer was male? But the police never mentioned anything about their friend being sexually assaulted. Had it been a jealous ex, or stalker even, Shikamaru doubted they would have passed up the chance to rape her before taking her life. That led him back to believing the murderer had been female.

"But why take her clothes off?" he wondered out loud.

The group all focused their attention on the genius, silently asking the same question. Shikamaru slipped from his thoughts, eyes trained on the faces of the people around him. "The killer is female." This news seemed to shock the group. For whatever reason, none of them had suspected the murder to be female, women just didn't commit crimes likes these – not usually anyway. It was alien to them to even consider the idea of the murderer being of the fairer sex. Women were naturally gentler than men and the way Sakura was murdered had been anything but gentle.

"Shikamaru?" Naruto asked at last, urging him to share his thoughts with the group of friends. He looked at the seven of them for a while before finally answering. "The murder is female." The group fell silent again. "You said this already," Naruto mentioned, "but why?"

Shikamaru straightened, clearing his throat before continuing. "Only a woman could have killed Sakura. A man would have sexually assaulted her before killing her, right?" The group thought about it for a while before nodding their heads. A man _would _have raped her first; they wouldn't have been able to pass up the chance. "Then why did she take her clothes off then?" Ino questioned. "To humiliate her no doubt. Only a woman would have been that vindictive. I can only imagine the last words the murder must have said before… you know."

The group of friends couldn't help but think about it now that Shikamaru mentioned it. "It's not fucking fair," Ino growled under her breath, tears building up in her eyes. Of all the women in Konoha, why Sakura? Why _her _Sakura? It didn't make any sense. Sure, people didn't always like Sakura, but who would want to hurt her? Ino ransacked her mind for days trying to think of people who might actually go that far to hurt her. "She didn't deserve that…"Ino hissed, sucking back the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes.

Hinata watched with impassive eyes as the blonde trembled, her brows crunched together with frustration and tears gushing down her cheeks. Absently, she wondered how she could have over looked how Sakura's death would affect the blonde, not that she cared really; she just hadn't expected such a response. "Hina-chan?"

The dark haired woman turned her gaze onto the male blonde of the group, his cyan eyes studying her worriedly. "Y-yes, Naruto-kun?"

"You okay? You look distracted. Stupid question, I know since this is a funeral and all… but…"

Hinata nibbled her bottom lip in what appeared to be a nervous habit, searching her mind for the appropriate words. "It's just… Sakura-san was… such a n-nice person. It's just a l-little hard to know she's g-gone…" Naruto seemed to have accepted that response for he offered her a small, bittersweet smile. "Yeah, she will be missed."

Hinata nodded her head along with the others. They might miss the pinkette, but Hinata knew she wouldn't. Her gaze shifted, fixing on the dark haired male who had been unsurprisingly quiet throughout the entire service. He seemed disconnected from the world, as if he wasn't really there – his body was present but his mind was on vacation. "Sasuke-san?" she inquired softly, moving closer to him. His dark eyes rolled down to her, silently questioning. She bit her bottom lip gently, searching for something to say. "It'll be okay," she said to him at last. Sasuke stared at her for a while longer before turning his attention away from her.

"Hn."

Hinata studied him a while longer, trying to gage his emotions, she'd kill – no pun intended – to find out what was going on in his head. To her, and the world, the inner working of Sasuke's mind were a mystery. Vaguely, she wondered how long she would have to wait for him to open up to her. Lightly, she shrugged her shoulders; she had gone so far for him already, what was a little more time? She could wait. She could feel eyes on her, watching her carefully. Her head turned in the direction the strange feeling was coming from to find Shikamaru staring at her, his eyes impassive and bored. "Wh-what?" she asked him softly. The male responded by shrugging his shoulders and turning away from her. "Nothing…"

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she watched him. It was obvious to her, despite the stoic expression he wore now, that he was thinking something – something about her. Shikamaru was a genius that much she knew; it probably wouldn't be long before he figured her out. She would have to get rid of him somehow, not now… but eventually. For the moment being, the opal-eyed sadist let her attention drift as a certain blonde spoke up. "How about we all go out and eat?" Naruto suggested. The group nodded solemnly. "Sakura wouldn't have wanted us to sit around feeling sorry for her."

"Tch. That's just how little you know her," Ino interjected. "She would have _wanted _us to sit around feeling sorry for her. She would have loved the attention."

Naruto laughed nervously at the truth. She _would _have wanted them to feel sorry, that was just kind of person she was. The blonde figured where ever the pinkette was, she was probably rolling her eyes and shaking her head, musing to herself about how they all missed her after all. Sakura wasn't exactly the humblest of people. Even so, that didn't make her a bad person – that didn't mean she deserved to die the way she had. Not even a little.

"Hn. But its not healthy," Naruto said at last, kicking lightly the ground. "Yes, lets all go," Chouji commented, providing comic relief to the group for they all cracked a smile, well most of them anyway. The seven of them began walking away towards the cars, ready to take off to where ever they'd be going to eat. Hinata, however, turned her head to find Sasuke staring down at he grave still, emotions she couldn't quite identify swirling in the depths of his eyes. "Sasuke-san?" The male turned to her, his eyes boring into hers, as if questioning her reasons for being there. "Everyone's leaving now," she said to him. "Hn." He turned away from her again, no longer interested in speaking. That was okay, however, Hinata understood that it would take time, years maybe, for him to trust her fully.

"Sakura-san would have been happy," she said softly, looking down at the grave with him. She could feel the male's attention shifting back to her again, but didn't allow for her eyes to drift to him, if she looked at him now he would close himself off. The air between them fell silent, no words exchanged between the two for some time before Sasuke, however, broke it.

"What do you mean?" he asked her at last, looking at her once more. Hinata smiled bitterly before forcing a – would seemed – genuine smile to her face. "Having you care so much, she would have been happy." Sasuke seemed surprised by her response for his eyes widened slightly. "She was always trying to get you to notice her – it's a shame that only in death do you see her," she continued, looking up at him finally. He studied her face for a while, trying to figure her before looking away again. "Hn."

Hinata smiled softly to herself before knotting her fingers together. "Lets meet up with the others, ne, Sasuke-san?" she said, turning to face him fully. The Uchiha nodded his head, digging in his pocket for his keys. "Yeah." The two began slowly moving towards his car before he stopped mid-stride. "… There's somewhere I want to go first." Hinata looked at him, nodding her head. "Okay. Where?" she asked. The male however gave no answer as he resumed walking towards his car, Hinata in tow.

* * *

"Where are we?" she asked when the car rolled to a halt. The male was quiet silent however, not quite ready to answer her question. Instead, he opted to open the car door and step outside. Hinata watched from inside the car as he began to walk, his steps careful and calculated. Finally, after some time had gone by she climbed out of the car as well and began following the dark haired male. "Sasuke-san?" she called to him, her legs carrying her towards him. He didn't speak, however – she expected as much – he only continued to walk, leaving her no other choice but to catch up to him. The woman fell into stride beside him, walking with him down the path. "This is where she saved me." Hinata looked up at him, her eyes urging him to tell her more. He seemed to think about the next thing he would say before continuing. "I was going to run away, a few years ago, but she saved me from myself. I was just so tired of everything, tired of everyone looking down on me. I just wanted to leave this place, forget everyone here and move on with my life. I wanted to go some place where no one knew the Uchiha name, were I could be 'Sasuke'… just 'Sasuke'. I would have left too had Sakura not stopped me."

Hinata gave him no response. She hadn't known this. It seemed the two had been closer than she had been aware of. She had always thought he didn't care for the pinkette, judging by the expression he wore now it was evident to her that it was quite the opposite. "Yeah, she was a stalker and annoying but… she was something. She didn't know me, the real me, and yet somehow she still believed in me. Though I tired to push her away she just wouldn't give up on me, wouldn't leave me alone. At times I hated her for it, but now… now that she's gone… I don't know."

"D-do you love Sakura-san?" she asked him softly, knotting her fingers together. Sasuke snapped his head in her direction, staring down at the smooth black hair of her head. Idly he watched for a few moments as the wind blew a few of the inky tresses back before answering, "No." Hinata nodded her head. Sasuke was a lot of things, but he was not a liar. From watching him she learned that he just didn't lie – the way he saw it, or how she figured he saw it, he had nothing to fear from anyone so why bother lying? There was nothing they could do to hurt him now. Everything that could have been done had already happened. There was nothing left to punish him with. "Why?" he probed, looking down at her still. The opal-eyed female was quite a while longer before answering him. "Just wondering. You seem out of it."

Sasuke nodded his head, a bitter smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "My friend was murdered. I have a right to be out of it, ne?" The way he said it, the singsong way his voice sounded let her know he was annoyed. "Y-you don't have to t-take you anger out on me, S-Sasuke-san…" she said however, suppressing the urge to curl her brow at him. "Ah," he said, nodding his head. "I'm sorry." She hadn't expected that from him, and judging by the way his voice sounded, she knew he wasn't being sarcastic. The Sasuke she knew loved dry humor; sarcasm was practically his middle name. "Hn…" she said softly.

The two continued to walk for a little while longer, comfortable silence falling between them. The night air was cool, but not uncomfortably so. "You should have worn a coat," he said to her however. She looked up at him, her brows arching in question. "Eh?" The male rolled his eyes down to her. "You should have worn a coat. You'll catch a cold." Hinata was silent for a while, baffled by what he had said. The weather wasn't bad, a comfortable seventy degrees, but the sheer idea of him caring about her catching a cold was… Hinata couldn't suppress the urge to giggle softly at him. "What?" he asked her, his expression stoic – adding to the humor she found in the situation. "What?" he asked again, this time his brows furrowing in annoyance. "S-Sasuke-san… is c-cute…"

The male stopped in his tracks and stared at her. Was she serious? Him cute? No. He was a lot of things, but he damn sure wasn't cute. "What part of me is cute?" he asked her, annoyed. Hinata smiled at him, giggling softly still. "Your face." Sasuke's brows crunched together at her. He couldn't believe what was coming out of her mouth. She had to be joking. Cute and Sasuke just didn't mix. It was like saying bunnies and car oil in the same sentence, just seemed out of place. "I beg your pardon?" he replied, growing even more annoyed by the amused look in her eyes. "Y-you're cute when you p-pout. A-and when y-you worry," she answered for him. Sasuke only shook his head. "I don't worry." "Yeah y-you do. You were w-worried about me j-just now." Sasuke frowned at her. "Because you stutter so damn much, it'd be even more annoying if you had a cold along with it." Hinata didn't seem offended like he had hoped she would. Instead, she offered him that same kind smile that irked the hell out of him.

He wasn't sure why, but every now and a again he wanted to slam her down and show her what pain was – he wanted her to see that not everything was rainbows and sunshine. They came from completely different worlds; her world was as foreign to him as French. Hn. She was France and he was Germany, two countries from the same continent but completely different. He couldn't understand it, these feelings he was having. He wanted to hurt her, but at the same time the idea of her being sad was uncomfortable for him. When it came to Hinata he wasn't sure how he felt about her. She was different, that much was true. Something about her was compelling, as if she were hiding something. He didn't like it.

"You're annoying, Hinata," he said to her at last, earning himself another smile from her. Completely annoying. "Hn."

He stared at her for a while before taking her hand and tugging her along. "S-Sasuke-kun," she gasped softly, forcing her legs to try and keep up with him. He was so much taller than she was, his steps further distanced from one another than hers, making it hard for her to keep up. The opal-eyed woman found herself, stumbling along. "Wh-where are we g-going?" she asked him. "To eat."

"The car's back th-that way," she said softly. "I feel like walking." So that was it? Hinata didn't mind walking, it gave her more time to get closer to him, however, if this was his idea of walking she'd pass. "C-can we slow d-d-down." Sasuke ignored her and continued to pull her along with him. This went on for twenty minutes or so, Sasuke pulling her along and Hinata whimpering softly, trying to keep up. "S-Sasuke-san…. Sasuke-san… Sa – " "I heard you," he hissed at her. Immediately, her mouth clamped shut. He let go over her hand after a while and slowed down to a more comfortable pace. Hinata let out a sigh of relief before looking around them finally. "Where are we?" she asked him. Sasuke – of course – was silent for a moment before speaking. "Konoha." Hinata looked around more, the place neighborhood they were in looked nothing like Konoha. "This is my family's district."

Sasuke wasn't sure why he was bringing her there. Since his family's death, he hadn't let anyone in there other than himself. To him, this place was scared. He hadn't touched anything really. He wanted it to be exactly how they had left it. He didn't want the smell that once was to disappear. He felt that cleaning it would clean away their souls. He never told that to anyone, he probably never would, but thinking about it, he might not mind telling Hinata if she asked him. For whatever reason he felt that he could trust her. She hadn't done shit to deserve it, but for some reason he felt as if he could trust her. Like she wouldn't leave him if she knew how fucked up he was inside. He felt like she would always be there. In his mind she had no right to go anywhere even if she wanted to. He hadn't fully admitted it, but in his mind she was his. When this feeling had come along, he wasn't sure, but it was definitely there. "S-Sasuke-san, why are we – "

"Sasuke."

She blinked a few times, trying to understand what he was saying. "Eh?" The male looked at her. "I am Sasuke and you are Hinata." It took a moment or so for her to digest what he was saying but when she did she forced a slight blush to her cheeks. "Hn." Sasuke stared at her for a moment or so before continuing to walk. "Come on, I'll take you to where I live." Hinata nodded and followed beside him, her opal eyes studying the barren building around them. How Sasuke could stand to live in such a place was beyond her. Not even she, as fucked up as her mind was, would have been able to live in a place where her family had been mercilessly slaughtered. It wasn't long however before they reached his apartment. Sasuke climbed the stairs with her in tow behind him. He slid opened the door and stepped inside, Hinata shutting it as she followed him in.

The male flicked the switch on the wall and light flooded the room. Hinata allowed her eyes to studied the scarce amount of furniture in the main room. She supposed since he lived alone it wasn't so bad that he didn't have that much. A television would have made it seemed less depressing however. All the male had was a dark brown couch, a coffee table and a book shelf. That was it. There was absolutely nothing special about the place. "Sasuke, I don't un-understand. Wh-why are we here?" she asked him, watching as he moved about the kitchen. "I told you. I'm hungry."

Her brows knotted together. "But the others – " "Fuck them," he intervened, coming out of the kitchen with two bowls of ramen. "Take your shoes off and sit down." Slowly, she nodded and kicked her shoes off before joining him on the couch. "Sasuke…" she said softly. He however ignored her and broke his chopsticks and began eating. "It'll get cold, my microwave isn't exactly the best." Hinata stared at him. "But – " "Don't make me say it, okay? Just… eat." Hinata studied his face for a while before nodding. So that was it. He didn't want to be with the others, but knew he needed company. He didn't want to be alone anymore.


	3. Phase 3

**_Golly, I've had the first paragraph for this story written for months, I just wans't sure how I wanted to go through with the rest of it. I think mostly I was being lazy because when I sat down today (March 3rd, 2011) and yesterday (March 2nd, 2011) and actually dedicated time to this story this is what I came up with. I also have a few more ideas I want to explore. I won't make any promises but I'm going to try and complete this story in 10 to maybe 11 chapters, less would be better but I know myself. Anyway, on with it! Read, Enjoy and you better Review!_**

**_

* * *

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**The Bundy Syndrome **

_KawaiixKisses_

Phase Three

* * *

The Sakura buzz had not at all died down in the weeks that she had been dead. Everyone was still fawning over her as if she was still there. Still praising her like she was there to hear it all. To be honest, it was starting to work on Hinata's nerves.

Why couldn't they all just forget about her? Three weeks was long enough to grieve, Hinata figured. It was time they all get over it. The seemingly frail girl sat in a local Ramen shop with her two closest friends, studying the troubled expressions on their faces.

The two had never truly gotten along with the pinkette, but the idea of someone from their little group had passed on was a hard on the two of them. They sat in silence mostly, offhanded chit-chat floating between them every now and then.

"Shino-kun…" Hinata's quiet voice piped up.

The male was silent for a long while before lifting his head to look at her from across the table. Her long black hair fell down past her shoulders and back, framing her pretty face. His lips turned up into a small, barely noticeable smile as he studied her big opal eyes. She looked nervous, as if unsure of where she was going with the conversation now that she had his attention.

"Hn?" he responded quietly.

Her eyes shifted from him to Kiba, searching for something to say. Kiba on the other hand looked just as interested as Shino was in what she would come up with.

"U-um…" she said softly, pressing her index fingers together and shifting her gaze. "W-would you l-l-like to share w-w-ith me?" she stuttered out.

Shino's brow arched at that. She usually opted to share with Kiba. Truthfully, he had always been a bit envious of the amount of attention she showed Kiba. Often he felt like a tag-a-long whenever the three of them were together. When they were younger he had harbored romantic feelings towards the heiress but never thought to act upon them, he was sure her feelings for him were purely platonic in nature, not at all similar to the feelings she had for a certain blonde. But that was years ago and he had since then moved on.

"Sure, Hina," he answered her softly.

The princess blushed lightly a small smile playing at the corner of her lips. Just then, Ten Ten walked over to the table, carrying with her a small white pad and a pen. "Hey guys," she greeted them.

The three turned their gazes onto the brunette; she in turn offered them a small smile. Sakura's death had been no secret, everyone in Konoha knew how the pinkette had died, and in fact many of them had turned up for her funeral.

Ten Ten's brown eyes met Hinata's studying her face for a moment or two before looking to her two friends. Ten Ten spent a lot of time with the heiress' cousin, but had never really gotten to know _her_. To be honest, she had always thought Hinata to be a bit of a freak. She was always really quite and walking with her head bent. The few times she had heard the girl speak, it was usually to answer a question and were almost always one word responses.

"Sorry to hear about Sakura-san, it must be hard."

"Yeah," Kiba responded, tapping his fingers against the table lightly.

_We didn't know her _that _well_, Hinata thought silently to herself, doing her best not to show her sudden flare of anger on her face.

"What can I get for you all?" Ten Ten asked at last.

"Roast beef for me," Kiba answered.

Shino looked to Hinata. "What kind do you want?"

"U-um… T-teriyaki ch-ch-chicken," she stammered out.

"Large Teriyaki Chicken for us," Shino informed the brunette who scribbled the orders on her notepad before disappearing.

"I still can't believe it," Kiba said. "It's still… I don't know… fresh."

Shino nodded his head slowly before all three of them fell into tense silence.

"It's just weird. One minute she was here and the next she was gone. I wish what I said to her last hadn't been so –"

"You barely knew her," Hinata said, cutting him off.

Kiba's brows shot up and his head snapped around to look at her. He had never expected Hinata to say something like that. Her voice wasn't it's usual soft tone, it was laced with a hint of venom – venom that he couldn't recognize.

"Hinata…" he said, looking at her still and searching for something to say.

"I-I mean… she w-was never th-th-that nice to us. Sh-she didn't even know Shino-kun's na-name," Hinata said softly, defending herself.

Kiba continued to stare. Hinata was right but still, Sakura was another human being, just like them. Her death reminded him of just how human they all were. That one day he too, as well as everyone else he knew, would die. It was more eye opening than anything else. But the way Hinata sounded, it was as if Sakura's death hadn't fazed her at all. But before he could comment on her odd behavior, the brunette returned with their orders, setting down a bowl of ramen in front of him and another much larger bowl in front of Hinata and Shino.

"_Itatakimatsu_," the three said in unison, breaking apart their chopsticks.

Kiba watched Hinata as she ate, smiling cutely at Shino. He had only then noticed that she hadn't picked him that day. A burning in his chest flared up as his eyes caught sight of Shino, slurping quietly on the noodles. He didn't seem to notice him, but if he did his dark glasses hid it well. His eyes drifted back to Hinata and when she caught his gaze he offered her a hesitant smile before turning away.

The soft bell by the front door sounded, alerting the owners of the shop that a new customer had entered. Kiba looked up to spy the dark, spiky haired male of their group walking in, his expression stoic as per usual. Casually, Sasuke's eyes found his then shifted to Hinata. She was leaned forward slightly, slurping noodles and smiling at Shino affectionately. Deciding it didn't matter, he turned away from them all and placed an order at the front.

"Oy! Sasuke!" Kiba called, waving his hands in the air to gain the male's attention.

Sasuke picked up the plastic bag with his ramen and turned, narrowing his eyes at the semi-happy expression on the hyper male's face. Silently, he weighed his options; he could walk out and ignore him, though the male would probably just follow him. On the other hand, he could go over there, but he'd be forced into everyone's favorite topic of discussion. Sighing, Sasuke figured the latter was his best bet and made his way over.

"Hey," he said blandly, addressing them all and sliding into the booth beside Shino.

Hinata's eyes widened slightly and she pulled back, noodles splashing back into the large bowl. Heat flooded her cheeks as genuine embarrassment consumed her. Sasuke looked at her, his face void of expression, then looked away once more when Kiba began talking. Hinata could barely hear what her friend was saying, she was far more focused on Sasuke and how embarrassed she was just then.

_He must think I'm sloppy_, she thought to herself. _She _actually thought she was sloppy, she _had _after all left so much blood behind when she sliced Sakura's throat. It was all over her and left her no other choice but to get rid of her clothes. The thought actually deepened her depression. She nibbled her bottom lip nervously, stealing quick glances at Sasuke who had been taking his ramen out of the plastic bag as Kiba began speaking.

"Feeling okay?" he asked.

Sasuke nodded his head, breaking his chopsticks. "Hn."

It was no secret that Sasuke was close to Naruto and Sakura growing up. The three of them were always hanging out together. Sasuke and Naruto as best friends and Sakura as the tag-along, though he denied it, it was obvious that he had had some attachment to the pinkette. This of course pissed the murderer off.

"Seems like its been years since anyone's been really okay," Kiba continued, twirling the noodles around his chopsticks.

Sasuke's gaze flickered up to him then back to his bowl as he stirred his ramen. Kiba watched him for a few moments in silence, trying to find some sort of emotion, Sasuke however gave none. Anyone would have thought the male simply had not cared but given the circumstances, Kiba knew it was just the opposite. Sasuke's way of dealing was to simply ignore – it was a fucked up system and Kiba decided to test it.

"I miss her, Sakura that is," he said offhandedly, slurping his noodles.

Sasuke's jaw grew tense but he offered no comment and continued to eat.

"We had plans to hang out the weekend coming up before she died."

Shino looked up at this. Kiba had always expressed his dislike for the pinkette; to hear that he actually had plans with her was actually a bit shocking. Hinata seemed to think so too for she turned and gave him a questioning look.

Kiba gave them a guilty smile. "I suppose now is a good a time as ever to tell you all," he started, "Sakura and I were involved."

Silence loomed over them.

"Kiba-kun…" Hinata's sweet voice sounded, disrupting the awkward tension.

"I know," Kiba said, offering her another smile. "She didn't want anyone to know, I didn't like it, but as long as she was happy I was okay."

Hinata blinked a few times before nodding her head. She never would have guessed that, she was certain that the pinkette would have never given Kiba the time of day. The idea of her taking Kiba away from her pissed her off. Even dead, Sakura managed to work her nerves. Who was she to think she could have both Kiba _and _Sasuke? They were _hers_. Exclusively. The princess gripped her chopsticks tightly in her hands, listening on as Kiba went into detail about their first date and how awkward the two had been when they first kissed, but it was Sasuke's chopsticks that snapped first.

The male glared at Kiba, eyes narrowing into slits. "Bullshit."

Kiba gave him a surprised look. "What do you mean?"

"Don't play stupid with me, Inuzuka. You don't know shit about Sakura," he growled.

Kiba sat back in the booth, folding his arms over his chest. "I knew her better than you did." A lie, all of it was a lie, but if was going to see just how foolproof Sasuke's wall was it was necessary.

"Shut your mouth. You don't know _shit _about her."

Kiba resisted the urge to smile. "Trust me, I _knew _her."

With that, the spiky haired male picked up his bowl and tossed it at the brunette across from him, noodles and ramen splashing into his face. When Kiba groaned in pain as the scorching hot soup hit him, Sasuke felt a small bit of satisfaction hit him.

"Kiba-kun!" Hinata exclaimed, watching as the male removed the bowl from his face.

His skin was red and angry and his eyes narrowed at

Sasuke. "What the fuck was that for? Are you crazy!" he screamed, taking his bowl and tossing it at Sasuke.

The Uchiha, however, saw it coming and quickly ducked, the bowl crashing into the wall.

"You got what the fuck you deserved, you lying sack of shit!" he growled, standing to his feet and getting up. "Sakura would never be with a guy like you."

"Why? Because you were her prince charming? You got a lot of nerve, acting all high and mighty now that she's dead but when she was here you couldn't give to shits about her," Kiba shot back.

The only thing keeping him from ripping the Uchiha's head off was Hinata's small hands, wrapping around his wrist. "Kiba-kun, don't" she whispered softly, tugging him down.

"Why not?" he shouted at her, turning his angry gaze in her direction.

Her eyes widened and she let him go. Kiba, seeming to notice that his anger was misplaced, looked guilty. "Hinata, I – "

She shook her head a bit, offering him a small patient smile before standing and following Sasuke out of the restaurant.

"Sasuke-kun," she called after him, trying to catch up to him.

The male continued to stalk down streets, trying his hardest to contain the anger he felt boiling in him. How dare anyone say those kinds of things about Sakura? Sure she was outgoing when it came to guys, but that didn't mean she'd stoop so low as to have a secret affair with Inuzuka. She was better than that. She could have anyone she wanted, well not _anyone _since he knew for a fact that he would never date her, she didn't need Inuzuka. What he said was obviously a lie, that didn't mean it didn't bother him.

"Sasuke-kun," she called again and this time he stopped and turned around.

She slowed to a steadier pace as she closed in on him, a worried expression claiming her features. "Are you okay?"

He studied her pretty face for a while, taking in the sight of her long black hair and paler than white skin. His eyes drifted lower to her vintage floral sundress and white sandals. For some reason, he was just then noticing how attractive she was. He had been aware that she was not ugly, but he had never really noticed how stunning she was. He took another moment to study the fullness of her breasts, how her waist dipped in and then flared out into dramatic hips.

"I'm fine."

"N-no you're not," she objected, looking up at him with her big, clear eyes.

Part of him relaxed. He always felt comfortable around her, as if he could open his thoughts to her without fear of being judged. Ever since the car accident that killed his parents, he had a hard time opening up to others. He was so used to keeping everything inside and taking care of himself that the idea of letting someone else take care of him was foreign. With Hinata, he felt that he could possibly let her. Maybe not now, but eventually.

"I just… wish everyone would stop talking about her," he admitted, running a hand threw his hair. "They all speak as if they had really known her, when truthfully half of them could barely stand her. I heard how they all used to gossip about her, for them to act as if it was some tragedy now is two-faced."

Hinata nibbled her bottom lip gently, searching her mind for something to say, but he continued speaking. "It's been well over a month, close to two even. They should all let it go."

Hinata was surprised at that statement. True, she was just as annoyed as he was, but she hadn't expected him to be annoyed at all. The fact that he felt it was time to let her go was even more proof to her that they belonged together. He completed her and she was sure she completed him. They were like two halves of a puzzle, waiting to be attached and form a beautiful work of art. Her heart pounded in her chest.

"Hn," she said quietly.

The wind blew gently, rustling her hair a bit. It caught his attention and he had the insane urge to reach out and touch it, to see what it would feel like pressed against him. Vaguely, he wondered what _she _would feel like pressed against him. She was different from the other girls in town. She wasn't throwing herself at him or trying to get his attention. It was like she genuinely cared about him. Like she wanted to spend time with him because she liked him or because they were friends, not because it would make her more popular among her group of girl friends. His heart did something funny then.

"Come with me," he said to her after a few silent minutes.

She opened her mouth to ask a question then closed it back and nodded her head.

* * *

He had taken her back to his apartment again, the walk comfortably silent. He could feel that she was nervous and from time to time he would catch her look at him and worrying her bottom lip. It was cute. When he had opened the door for her and let her inside, she looked around the darkness again.

He watched her for a while, shutting the door and resting his back against it. She moved around his house freely, slowly taking in everything as if it were the first time she had been there. She contrasted greatly with all the masculinity in his home. She was so soft and frilly, she fragile that she looked out of place amongst all his stuff. Part of him wanted her to fit in with him. It was hard for him to explain it, all the things he wanted from her, but he knew he wanted _something_. It was a different need than the one he had for Naruto. That need was for companionship, someone to joke around with, to compete with. What he wanted from Hinata he would never want from Naruto.

"Do you want something to eat? We sort of left before you got to finish," he said to her, talking into his kitchen.

"N-no, I'm not hungry," she said following him. "Are you?"

"Hn."

Hinata blushed lightly, remembering that he had tossed his food at Kiba before really being able to finish. "I can cook you something."

He looked at her. "I spent the last of the cash I had on me on the ramen. I can't pay you."

Hinata looked at him for a minute or so before soft giggles bubbled up her throat. "P-pay me? I _w-want _to d-do this. You don't have to p-pay me Sasuke-kun."

He stared at her for a while. He had learned that nothing was for free, everything came with a price, so what was hers? Surely she was looking for something from him. He had allowed himself to believe that she didn't want anything, but the realistic part of him was starting to show, there had to be _something _she wanted. He couldn't think of anything though. She was the heiress of a mega corporation so it couldn't be money and since he had no family it couldn't be prestige.

"What's with you?" he asked after a moment.

She stared at him. "What's w-with me?" she echoed him. "N-nothing. D-do you think something's wrong with m-me?"

"No. That's the problem. I keep trying to find out why you're talking to me. Why you insist on trying to be my friend. What's with you?"

She was silent for a while, gaping at him. "I l-like you," she said softly, blushing and turning her gaze down.

_She likes me. _The thought danced around in his mind for a while. He didn't mind that she liked him; in fact he was quite pleased with it. He _wanted _her to like him.

"Why?"

She swallowed past the lump that had lodged itself in her throat, unable to meet his gaze. "You're like me," she said to him, losing her stutter. "Lonely. Afraid to show people who you are. We're the same."

Sasuke stared at her long and hard, noticing the absence of her stutter. She was amazing, he decided. He wasn't sure how she was any of those things, but the simple fact that she saw through him better than anyone else did wonders for how he viewed her. His heart did that funny thing again and he was unable to control himself this time. He wanted to touch her. Everywhere. He wanted to see how she would feel pressed against him. He had wanted other girls before, he had bedded plenty of them too, but he had never experienced the pull he was feeling with Hinata with any of them. He never cared about possessing any of them, making any of them his. But with Hinata, he knew he'd lose his mind if anyone so much as _thought_ to touch her. She was his.

With that thought in mind he walked over to her and crushed his lips against hers. She squeaked at first, shocked at his actions, but when his fingers tangled in her hair and he held her in place, she began to respond. Her lips moved slowly, hesitantly with his, trying him out as he did her.

She smelled really good. Like spring flowers and vanilla, or something like that. Her hair felt just as soft as it looked, he noted as he played with a few strands. He couldn't help the excited feeling that went through him when she pressed her small frame against him more, parting his lips with her tongue. The action was a bit of a surprise, he would never had expected something like it from fragile Hinata.

He kissed her harder; back her up against the wall. She moaned against his lips, the soft sounds playing havoc on his senses. For a while, he forgot about everything. About Sakura, about his dead parents, his insane brother, his fucked up life. For a while she was the only thing that existed. He lifted her left leg around his waist, pulling her center up close to his and letting her feel just how much she had turned him on. She lifted her right one on he own accord, leaving him no other choice but to support her weight, which he didn't mind in the least – it gave him an excuse to grab and grope her ass.

She let out more and more soft moans against his lips as his tongue searched her mouth for hers. She sucked his tongue into her mouth more and he ground his hips into hers, pressing as close to her as he possibly could with their clothes in the way. He pulled her away from the wall and walked her to his bedroom and set her down. He pulled back from her lips, burning kisses down her neck and pulling her dress up over her stomach, his hands sliding over her soft, smooth skin. It was her turn to tangle her fingers in his hair, moaning softly as he nibbled on her skin, sending jolts of pleasure through her.

"Sasuke-kun…" she whispered softly, sending him over the edge.

The only thought he had now was the remove their clothes. He had to get rid of them. They were in his way. He pulled back from her neck and stared down at her face. Her lips were swollen and red from his kisses, bruises of passion scattered along her neck. Her opal eyes were striking through the dark, even though they were half lidded and heavy with lust.

He pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the ground. He was thoroughly pleased when she began to ogle him, studying every dip and curve of the abs that were sculpted into his skin. A small smile claimed his features as she watched her biting into her bottom lip before looking up at him again. He slowly pulled her dress off, letting it stay where he had tossed his shirt. He studied her plain, strapless black bra and wondered vaguely how she had even found a bra that was able to support such large breasts without any straps. The thought quickly vanished when she sat up and unbuckled her bra and tossed it with the rest of her clothes. His breath caught in his throat as his focused intently on her large, firm breasts.

"You are beautiful," he said softly to her.

He had never called a girl that before. When he did bother to notice them he simply used terms such as "hot" or "sexy", but never "beautiful". Part of him felt it was because no one _was _beautiful when compared to Hinata. _His _Hinata.

He watched as heat rose under her skin, adding color to her pale skin. His hands closed around her breasts, squeezing them gently and earning him an appreciative moan from her. His hands slid down further and pulled her black panties from her legs slow and deliberate.

"Has anyone ever touched you here?" he asked quietly in the dark, his fingers playing gently over her clit.

She shook her head no slowly, biting her lip and gasping softly as his fingers pressed down against the bit of flesh between her thighs. Her answer pleased him. He wasn't sure how he'd react if she had answered yes. The idea of another man being there before him pissed him off.

"Good," he said softly, sliding his fingers all over her clit, feeling her become wetter.

He looked back up at her face and could see how nervous and eager she was. He could tell she wanted him and by the way she was behaving it was obvious she had never done this before. That was okay with him, it was perfect actually. He didn't mind teaching her.

He slid his finger down lower, pressing it against her entrance and watching as she tensed up a bit.

"Relax," he said softly to her, sliding his finger into her virgin entrance.

She gritted her teeth a bit before relaxing visibly. Slowly, he pushed it all the way in then back out, and in again, repeating the same, slow process over and over until she began shaking and moaning.

"Sasuke-kun…" she whispered softly, pressing herself closer to his hand.

He smirked in the dark, pumping his finger in and out of her faster and harder. The princess moaned, her eyes rolling back and her body arching as her very first orgasm exploded inside of her. She relaxed into the bed, breathing hard and licking her lips as he pulled his finger out. He began unzipping his pants then stopped, taking her hand and placing them on his zipper. "I want you to do it," he said to her.

She nodded her head, unzipping his jeans and tugging them down awkwardly. He smiled at her, pulling his legs out and waiting for her to set to work on his boxers. When she didn't, he looked at her already knowing what was up. "Don't be afraid," he whispered, pressing kisses against his cheek and lips.

Swallowing again, she slowly pulled down his boxers, her eyes widening at the hardened male flesh that poked out at her. She had seen a lot of things in her life, she had even killed, but she had never seen a man naked before. The times she had seen her father and Neji naked (only the upper half) hadn't counted, at least not to her.

Hinata looked up at him, her heart beating wildly as he rolled on top of her, parting her legs and pulling them up around him. He stared at her, rubbing the distinctively male part of his anatomy against her wet entrance, earning him soft, eager moans from her.

"It's going to hurt…" he said to her softly.

She bit her bottom lip gently. "I know," she whispered back softly.

"I won't ever hurt you again after this," he told her, pressing against her hole more.

Her eyes drifted shut in anticipation, waiting for what was to come. "I know."

With that, he plunged deep into her.

Phase three: Complete.

* * *

**Yupp so uh... That's it. Review, onegaishimasu!**


	4. Phase 4

**_I know I'm early, but I wanted to get this out of the way before the idea left me. No time for idle chit-chat, I'm not supposed to be on the computer! Read, Enjoy and Review._**

**_

* * *

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**The Bundy Syndrome**

_Kawaiixkisses_

Phase 4

* * *

Something was definitely not right – he could feel it. Everyone was going on as if a killer wasn't out there but Shikamaru was more than aware of its presence. He knew it was lurking around, blending in with normalcy so perfect it was almost undetectable. It couldn't hide much longer though; he knew where to find it. He knew its disguise and saw right through it.

He knew he had to tell someone what he had picked up on, but he couldn't go around accusing it without proper proof. Because of who _it _was, it would be hard for anyone to believe him. It was preposterous even – he had also had a hard time believing it too. The monster had the perfect cover up, the perfect ruse to hide from the world; no one would ever suspect sweet and innocent Hyuuga Hinata.

The police claimed to be doing everything they could to find the murderer, but it had been three months since the pinkette was slaughtered in her apartment. Many were staring to believe that the police would never find out who it was. He had heard his father and some of the other men on the force discussing the case but none of them had any leads. They had tracked down all the people they thought might hate the pinkette enough to wish ill onto her but none of them gave them anything they could truly work with. The fact that they hadn't even _considered _the Hyuuga princess pissed him off, though he could understand why they hadn't. Who would? The girl seemed so small and fragile, he was willing to bet money she had never even been with a man. The whole thing was frustrating. She was the perfect murderess. Or else she would have been had he not figured her out. She was clever, he'd give her that, but it was only a matter of time before she was figured out.

The day was bright and sunny, contrasting Shikamaru's thoughts. He found himself with his two closets friends – Chouji and Ino – resting in the park. The three of them laid on their backs, staring up at the puffy balls of smoke in the sky, watching as they drifted slowly. It was silent between them save for the occasional crunch Chouji and his chips made. They had been there for quite some time, relaxing under the warm sun.

"It's still weird," Ino said.

Shikamaru and Chouji didn't have to ask what she meant by that. The only thing anyone had been able to think about was Sakura. Letting go was hard; they all learned that in the months that followed her death. None of them had really known how much a part of their lives she truly was until she died. It was like a part of them had died with her, lost with her soul.

"Yeah," Chouji said, resting the bag of potato chips beside him.

Shikamaru gave no comment. Often he had wanted to express to them his ideas on who was responsible for their friend's death, but he knew it was better not to. The town would have a hard time acknowledging that the murder was none other than the sweetest girl any of them had ever known. She was so meek and quiet, always blushing and stuttering and falling all over herself. The fact that she had actually murdered someone and covered herself so well only led him to believe that she was smarter than any of them had given her credit – she was the most vile human being as far as he was concerned.

"Her birthday is coming up," Ino mentioned, playing idly with a strand of long blonde hair.

Chouji turned his head to look at her. "You planning something?"

Ino nodded. "I wanted to have a party for her, at her place. I'll need to clean it up first."

"Isn't there police tape still around it?"

"No, they took it down a long while ago."

"Need any help?"

The blonde seemed to think about it for a moment then shook her head. "No. I want to do this by myself."

Chouji didn't argue with her on it. He knew all too well what this would be like for Ino. She wanted to reflect on her best friend by herself, get over her death and if cleaning up her apartment was the way to do it then he'd let her. And when she fell apart, he'd be there for her as always.

Shikamaru listened to his friends in silence, giving no comment. He simply laid on his back, watching the clouds as his thoughts began to turn. He had to find a way to expose Hinata for the monster she truly was. He needed to do this for Ino, for Sasuke, for Naruto – everyone. They all needed closure. But if he pounced on her now with no real proof, they'd all attack him. No one would believe him – sometimes _he _didn't _want _to believe him. But it was true. Hinata was a wolf in sheep's clothing and she needed to be brought to justice and if it was the last meaningful thing he had ever done with his life, he _would _expose her. He would see to it that she was given whatever inhumane punishment she deserved.

* * *

Things with Sasuke were uncertain. The Hyuuga was sure she wasn't his girlfriend but was more than his friend. After she had lost her virginity to him he hadn't touched her like that again, however he did kiss her when no one looked. It was frustrating to an extent, but again she reminded herself that she needed to be patient. She couldn't rush his love, it would be more meaningful if it came about on its own. That of course didn't stop her paranoia.

It had been months since the beast – Sakura – had been slain and the police had yet to pick up on her. It was only by luck that they hadn't found her yet. She had been so sloppy, so careless. She hadn't even dumped the weapon. This had worried her, why had she been so lazy? It wouldn't have taken much for her to get rid of the knife. She had tied it up and stored it in the closet. It was only a miracle, an act of God's kindness, that the police had been so stupid as to not find it.

But God doesn't grant the same gift twice, Hinata told herself. She would have to go back there and get rid of it. It was risky, going back for the murder weapon – hell, going back to the crime scene was risky. It would look suspicious if she randomly showed up there. She would have to come up with a good reason, something without any holes in it. She couldn't risk becoming a suspect.

The princess found herself walking around the familiar halls of Sakura's apartment building. It smelled the same as it had that night, like fresh paint and air freshener. She ignored the strong scent and arrived in front of the pinkette's door. She stood there for a while, flashbacks of that night skipping through her memory.

She knocked softly a few times on the oak door. A few minutes rolled by before it finally opened to reveal the tall, lanky pinkette. She looked surprised at first to see the Hyuuga princess, but her expression soon changed to a pleasant smile.

"_Hina-chan, what are you doing here?"_

_The princess nibbled her bottom lip softly, looking down and blushing a bit. "I n-need your help with something…"_

_Sakura was silent for a moment before a sly grin tugged at her lips. "Is it about Naruto?"_

_Hinata's face turned beat red and her eyes watered slightly. Sakura couldn't help but giggle at Hinata's cute expression. She was always so shy when it came to Naruto. "Come in," she said to her, standing back and allowing the small girl to walk in._

Hinata blinked a few times, pushing the thoughts away as she turned the handle on the apartment door. It was open, but the landlord had yet to put it up for sale. No one wanted to rent it when they knew a murder had taken place in it only a few months ago.

The murderess walked in and examined the room. It was the same as she had remembered it. There were white sofas with pink throw pillows, a glass coffee table with a black mug on it. A large TV was mounted on the wall above a shelf with a few pictures of the pinkette with Ino and a few others with her, Naruto and Sasuke. Turning down the hall she found a coat rack that she hadn't noticed before with a tan rain coat hung up and a black umbrella beside it. She ran her small fingers over the rain coat, noting how expensive it must have been. Flipping it over she found the Gucci interior. The murder took it down and tried it on. It would have been long on her, but her large bust made up the difference so that it fit perfectly. Leaving it unbuttoned, she continued on her journey through the apartment, looking around at things she had missed before. It was ten minutes before she heard the front door pushing open again.

Her pale, white eyes widened in fear. Who the hell would be coming her? Hinata panicked, her eyes darting around as she considered hiding. But then she remembered her excuse; she had a _reason _to be here. That's right, she was looking for a pair of shoes she had loaned to Sakura, she only wanted to get them back. Yes, everything was okay.

She walked out to the living room again, but not before hanging up the Gucci raincoat, to spot Ino coming in.

The tall blonde was dressed in a gray, cotton dress and pink and white wedges. Her blonde hair was curly and she wore just a few hints of make-up. When she spotted Hinata, she stared.

"Hina-chan? What are _you _doing here?" she asked, shutting the door behind her.

"I w-was just l-looking for a p-pair of shoes I l-l-lent Sakura-chan."

Ino looked at her. "Wow really? You couldn't have just left them?"

Hinata blushed. Why couldn't it have been anyone other than Ino? The blonde was such a bitch. Hinata didn't know how on earth anyone put up with her. Sakura was annoying, but her blonde friend took the cake.

"I n-needed it…" she said softly, looking down.

Ino kissed her teeth. She never liked Hinata, not really anyway. She was such a goody-goody, always doing what was right. To be honest, Ino thought she was impossibly boring and dull. Nothing stood out about her except for those huge knockers. Really, she was a waste. She could do so much with her looks but instead hid behind that long hair of hers.

"You and Sakura don't have the same taste," she remarked.

Hinata bit her tongue. The verbal lashing she was ready to unleash on the blonde would not have been pretty. If she wanted to maintain her innocent persona, she would have to put up with whatever snide comment that left the blonde's mouth.

"I doubt she would have wanted to borrow anything of _yours_. What are you really doing here?" she questioned, setting her bag down on the counter in the kitchen.

"I-I told you…" Hinata answered her, pushing her index fingers together.

The blonde kissed her teeth. "That wasn't the truth, was it Hina-chan?"

Hinata swallowed past the lump that had lodged itself in her throat. "I-it is."

"You're probably here to steal some of her stuff so you can move in on Sasuke, I've seen the way you look at him now. You're probably glad Sakura's dead, aren't you? No one to get in your way now, huh?"

Hinata stared at Ino. It was obvious her accusations were coming from frustration; she was hurting and missing her best friend. Hinata however, couldn't let that get in the way of what she was here to do. Tears bubbled in her eyes, sliding down her cheeks slowly. She looked down at her feet, and rubbing her eyes, sniffling softly.

"Oh, boo hoo. In this world, nobody cares if you cry Hinata. Grow up," the blonde snapped, her brows wrinkling together.

Hinata turned and ran back, heading for the closet. Ino followed her, watching as she opened up the coat closet and dug around the shows at the bottom. "What are you doing?" Ino questioned, tugged at Hinata's arm.

The princess let out a soft cry as she was pulled up, a tiny black bag in her hand. "I-I'm g-getting my shoes. L-let me go," she sobbed, more tears sliding down her face as she pulled at her arm.

The blonde tightened her grip, pulling the princess to her more. "No you're not. What's in the bag, Hinata?" she questioned her.

Hinata shook her head. "Sh-shoes. Ino-san, y-you're hurting m-me," she sobbed softly.

Ino frowned. "Stop lying. What are you hiding," she demanded, tugging on the princess more.

"P-please, stop," Hinata cried.

Ino ignored her and ripped the bag from her hands, letting the princess fall to the ground with a soft thud. Tearing the bag open she spotted the butcher knife, dried blood crusting on it's blade.

"What the fuck _is _this, Hinata? What _is _it," she screamed, dropping the bag on the ground and pointing at it. "Tell me. What the fuck did you do?"

Hinata was silent for a long while, drying her face with the dark blue sleeve of her cardigan. "It's a knife," she answered, her voice steady, no trace of a stutter or that she had been crying.

Ino was silent; her eyes narrowing and tears burning the back of her eyes as she watched Hinata standing to her feet. Her expression was different, not that same sad face she had on before, or the shy or embarrassed one she usually wore. This expression, this mask, was different, unlike any she had ever seen.

The murderess pushed a few strands of hair from out of her face and with the pink scrunchy on her wrist, she pulled her hair up into a ponytail.

"You should have just let me leave, Ino-san," she mentioned, picking up the bag and pulling out the knife. "I never intended on hurting anyone else, but you wanted to be difficult."

Ino took a few steps back before running towards the door, trying to get around Hinata. The princess caught her around her waist and pushed her back, sending the blonde to the ground. Ino looked up at her in horror – she was a lot stronger than she let on. She was a lot _different _then she let on. She never would have suspected Hinata of doing such a thing. She would have laughed if anyone had told her that Hinata was a killer, the idea was just plain stupid – laughable. Hinata was always so quiet and shy, jumping at the sound of a mouse; she could never, _ever _hurt anyone. That didn't stop her heart from pounding in fear, or sweat from beading on her forehead.

"D-don't come near me you psycho bitch," Ino warned, crawling back as Hinata began moving close to her.

A smile tugged at her lips, a smile Ino had never seen Hinata make. Under any other circumstances, she would have thought that smile made her look pretty, but now she looked like a monster. "I'm not the bitch, Ino. You are," she mentioned.

Ino frowned and spat at her, standing up on her feet, ready for a fight. Hinata looked at her, cocking her head slightly. She never thought Ino was the fighting type, sure she got into catty girl fights, but this sort of fight would mean life or death. A simple hair tugging wouldn't solve this.

"You're not serious are you?" Hinata asked, amusement laced in her voice.

Ino only continued to frown and spat at her again, this time the spit landing near her feet. "That's disgusting," Hinata said, frowning at the blonde.

Ino, deciding it was now or never, lunged herself at the blonde, swinging and missing her face. Being the heiress of a mega corporation meant Hinata was the target for many kidnapping attempts. Her father, though difficult, loved his daughters and nephew and had them all study martial arts as a means of self-defense. Hinata hadn't been the best at it, but she had learned enough to be able to duck and block a few attacks whenever the need presented itself. She easily twisted her way around the blonde, laughing at Ino's futile attempts.

"Stop laughing you bitch," the blonde growled, reaching for Hinata' neck, but the princess was too fast.

When she reached for her, it gave Hinata the perfect opening to stab deep into her side with the knife. Ino was silent, her movements still. She looked down at her side where the knife protruded from her skin and bile rose in her throat. Unable to hold it in, the blonde lost her lunch all over Sakura's white carpet.

"She did the same thing," Hinata mentioned as the blonde crumpled to the floor, holding her side.

She struggled to breathe as she laid there, her blue eyes staring at the knife and soft sobs of pain rolling out of her throat as her hand closed around the knife's handle.

"Let me help you," Hinata said, brushing the blonde's hands away and ripping the knife from her side.

That's when Ino screamed. Her blue eyes rolled in the back of her head as blood gushed out, staining her gray dress and the white carpet.

"Oh, don't be such a big baby," Hinata said, studying the fresh blood on the blade.

"Bitch…" Ino hissed, spitting at her again.

Hinata turned her white gaze onto the blonde, no more of her pervious amusement there. "That's the third time you spat at me. I'm going to kill you."

Ino's heart stopped then started up again. It wasn't until just then that the idea that she was going to die hit her. She was going to die, just as Sakura had. Hinata was going to kill her.

"Please…" Ino begged softly.

"Didn't I say 'please' to you too? Did you let me go when I asked you?" she patronized her, squatting down beside her and wiping the blood off on Ino's face. "Why should I be nice to _you_?"

Ino began to sob, tears sliding down her cheeks and mixing with the blood. "Please Hinata. Please don't kill me," she cried, her eyes shutting.

Hinata was silent for a moment or two, pressing the blade against Ino's arm, not hard enough to penetrate but enough to cause some pain. "Why? You were never really kind to me. Even when you walked in here you were being rude. Why do you deserve to live? Aren't there enough bad people in the world?"

"I'm not a bad person, Hinata. I'm n-not," Ino sobbed, her eyes opening and pleading with her.

"What nice thing have you ever done?"

"I volunteer d-down at the homeless shelter," she said softly, sniffling and trying to ignore the pain in her side and on her arm.

Hinata clapped her hands together in mock congratulations. "You only do that because it makes you feel better about yourself."

Ino sobbed hard, her body shaking. "Hinata! Please! Please don't do this," she cried. "I won't tell anyone. I swear, I won't tell anyone about Sakura!"

"Sakura? Tch. No one would believe you anyway."

Ino sobbed again. It was true. _No one _would believe Hinata killed the pinkette. There was no way she would do something like that. It didn't add up, made no sense.

"Hinata, please…! Please don't!" she cried, but it wasn't enough.

Without wasting anymore time the murderess took the knife and plunged it into Ino's neck, finally shutting her up.

* * *

It was quiet, the same daunting silence from when Sakura was murdered hovered over them. Another one of their friends had been killed and in the same place. It was like the world was falling apart around them.

"Ino too? This is just fucked up," Kiba hissed, brown eyes narrowing.

The group of men – and Hinata – nodded their heads.

"Killing not once but twice is unforgivable. The very idea that the killer returned to the crime scene is disgusting," He continued to rant, anger showing on his face.

"It's true, it's getting out of hand now," Naruto mentioned, folding his arms across his chest.

Hinata studied him. His blue eyes looked tired, as if he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, and his blonde hair was messy than usual, signs that he had been pulling on it. Her eyes shifted to Sasuke who's expression looked grim. She could see the wheels turning in his head, she'd kill – no pun intended – to know what he was thinking.

"The police aren't doing enough," Kiba went on to say. "They're not looking at the right people, at all the evidence!"

The men nodded.

"There's a serial killer out there, he's picked off two of our friends already, how many more is he going to take?" Shikamaru's voice came.

The group turned their attention on him. He hadn't said a word the entire night, neither he nor Chouji. They had known Ino the best, they were her two closest friends other than Sakura and many had assumed she and Chouji were together. The round man's face looked drained, his eyes tired and red from what they all suspected was lack of sleep and tears.

Hinata couldn't say she felt bad for Chouji. If anything Chouji should be _thanking _her. The woman wouldn't even acknowledge their relationship because Chouji was fat. That kind of shallow person didn't _deserve _a nice guy like him. The way she saw it, she did him a favor – with Ino out of the way he could find someone who would treat him better, someone who didn't care if he had a few extra pounds on him.

Her eyes lingered for a while longer before drifting to Shikamaru who had been eyeing her. Their gazes locked and a chill went down her spine. He knew. Hinata didn't know how she knew he knew, but he did. It was obvious. The way he looked at her, sized her up, she could tell he was suspecting her. She wanted to tell herself that no one would believe him, but Shikamaru was a genius, is words would carry _some _weight if he brought her up.

_I'm not scared of you_, she thought silently to herself, staring back at him before his gaze shifted away.

"The killer could be after more of us if not all of us. It's our job to think of all the people who might have a grudge against us – don't eliminate anyone because you _think_ they couldn't possibly do it," he continued, his gaze shifting to Hinata then back to the group. "Anyone who you might have pissed off, anyone who Sakura or Ino could have pissed off."

The group fell silent. It was then Hinata decided that she could have some fun with this.

"I-Ino-san a-and Saku-kura-san were s-so nice… who would w-want to kill them?" she stuttered out softly, tears building up in her eyes.

The men in the group all turned their eyes on her. All this death was probably eating her alive. Their poor, sweet Hinata had to deal with far too much.

"Don't worry Hina-chan, they'll find who did this," Kiba said, coming up to her and allowing her to hold his hand.

Sasuke, who had been silent the entire night, cleared his throat, noticing the physical contact the two had made. True, he had avoided showing his affection for her around everyone else, but that hadn't meant he wanted others to do it. He felt as though he was the only one who had the right to touch her, she was his. And she knew it too because as soon as she noticed his eyes on her she let go of Kiba's hand. He folded his arms over his chest, looking away from her.

"I h-hope so," she said quietly, looking down and worrying her bottom lip between her teeth.

"Me too," Shikamaru chimed in.

Hinata looked to him then back down before standing up from her seat on the couch in Naruto's apartment. "I'm g-gonna head home."

"Let me take you," Kiba said. "We don't know who the killer will come after next."

Sasuke kissed his teeth, taking her hand and pulling her to him. "I'll take you."

It wasn't a suggestion, something she could

negotiate. He _would _be taking her home. The princess nodded her head, flashing a small smile at Kiba before being pulled away by Sasuke.

He brought her outside, stalking down the street towards his car before letting go over her and slowing down. It was silent between them for a long while before he finally spoke.

"You and Kiba," he started slowly. "What's going on?"

Hinata blinked a few times, trying to understand what he was talking about? "Wh-what do you m-mean?"

He rolled his eyes. "I figured out that there was nothing between him and Sakura – but I've seen the way he looks as you. Don't pretend you don't notice it. What's going on?"

He was right, she did know how Kiba felt – but that didn't mean there was anything happening there. "N-nothing… he's my f-friend."

Sasuke stared at her, brows crunching together. He couldn't very well tell her who she could and couldn't be friends with, but God he wanted to. He hated the way other men looked at her; only he had the right to look at her.

He suddenly found himself crushing his lips against hers, pulling her small, soft body against him. Her small hands slid up his back and clung to his shoulders as she pushed herself to her tip-toes, returning his kiss. He sighed against her lips, feeling all the stress from recent events melting away. She was perfect, his little piece of heaven. Ever since he had allowed himself to want her and to have her he had been less tense. He felt at peace with her, as if everything would be okay as long as no one took her from him. Slowly, she was starting to become the only thing that matter to him.

He broke their kiss, watching as her eyes slowly rolled open, her minty breath falling against his lips as she fought to catch her breath. He brushed her bangs back from her face to truly look at her.

"You're mine. You know that right?"

A pretty smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "Hn."

Phase Four : Complete.


End file.
